The Off Topic Topic

[Savonarola]

Today I learned that the French word for lawyer (avocat) is also the French word for avocado.  I'm not sure, but I think this may reveal a profound truth about French civilization.

[Josquius]

They're expensive and rotten inside half the time.

[Sheilbh]

[Oexmelin]

Today I learned that the French word for lawyer (avocat) is also the French word for avocado.  I'm not sure, but I think this may reveal a profound truth about French civilization.

(Historically borrowed from Spanish - the nahuatl ahuacatl sounded close to the existing word for lawyer, avocado.)

[DGuller]

In Russian it's advocat.  I wonder where the d went for the French.

[HVC]

advogado/advogada is Portuguese for lawyer too. Surprised Russian is similar. Does Russian have a lot of Latin words?

[HVC]

Today I learned that the French word for lawyer (avocat) is also the French word for avocado.  I'm not sure, but I think this may reveal a profound truth about French civilization.

(Historically borrowed from Spanish - the nahuatl ahuacatl sounded close to the existing word for lawyer, avocado.)

I though palta was the Spanish word for avocado?

[Oexmelin]

Palta is from quechua, IIRC - so mostly used in South America.

[HVC]

That makes sense. I learned the word from a Colombian.

[DGuller]

advogado/advogada is Portuguese for lawyer too. Surprised Russian is similar. Does Russian have a lot of Latin words?

It has a fair amount of words with Latin roots, and it also borrowed a lot of foreign words (usually French).  If a concept was introduced to Russia in the last few centuries, it probably has a foreign name for it.

[Savonarola]

That makes sense. I learned the word from a Colombian.

"Aguacate" was the term they used in Caribbean Colombia; but that's a long way from the regions where they speak Quechua.  I believe aguacate is the most common term in Spanish.

Just out of curiosity is "Aguacates" slang for "Testicles" in European Spanish, or is that limited to the New World?

[Richard Hakluyt]

advogado/advogada is Portuguese for lawyer too. Surprised Russian is similar. Does Russian have a lot of Latin words?

It has a fair amount of words with Latin roots, and it also borrowed a lot of foreign words (usually French).  If a concept was introduced to Russia in the last few centuries, it probably has a foreign name for it.

Yeah, it is really noticeable that Russian uses a lot of foreign words for the more complicated/modern subjects; perhaps a consequence of being behind the curve for several centuries 

Though English also borrows words at a formidable rate or forms new ones from Greek/Latin roots.......maybe Russian is not so different.

[The Larch]

That makes sense. I learned the word from a Colombian.

"Aguacate" was the term they used in Caribbean Colombia; but that's a long way from the regions where they speak Quechua.  I believe aguacate is the most common term in Spanish.

Just out of curiosity is "Aguacates" slang for "Testicles" in European Spanish, or is that limited to the New World?

"Aguacate" is how it's said in Spain as well, never ever heard "Palta" in my whole life.

Food slang for testicles over here is "eggs" rather than avocados. Non food related slang is "balls" instead.

[Syt]

advogado/advogada is Portuguese for lawyer too. Surprised Russian is similar. Does Russian have a lot of Latin words?

It has a fair amount of words with Latin roots, and it also borrowed a lot of foreign words (usually French).  If a concept was introduced to Russia in the last few centuries, it probably has a foreign name for it.

Yeah, it is really noticeable that Russian uses a lot of foreign words for the more complicated/modern subjects; perhaps a consequence of being behind the curve for several centuries 

There's a lot of German loan words in Russian, like "Maßstab" (масшта́б) for map scale, "Platzkarte" (плацка́рта), "Zifferblatt" (циферблат), "Butterbrot" (бутерброд) - my favorite , "Kartoffel" (карто́фель), "Buchhalter" (Бухгалтер). Lots of these came from Germans working in administration, and later engineering.

P.S.: Advokat also means lawyer in German, but it's an old fashioned word at this point. We also have the Winkeladvokat (Winkel most likely in the sense of working in a hidden crook) for a lawyer who doesn't know his trade or uses questionable methods.

[celedhring]

Today I learned that the French word for lawyer (avocat) is also the French word for avocado.  I'm not sure, but I think this may reveal a profound truth about French civilization.

They're pretty close in Catalan (advocat/alvocat) and many people mix up both words. The result is that you see many fruit stores with signs selling lawyers.